Dom #2
If she's connecting dots between Rocco's kidnapping, Gio's death, Santa’s disappearance, and whatever else she's uncovered about La Corona, we're all at risk.
The thought of Olivia building a case against my family while the memory of her body against mine is still fresh twists in my chest. It feels like a betrayal.
I need to find out what she knows before she gets too close to the truth.
Before she discovers just how far we went to protect our own and how little we actually learned in the process.
“You should know, she called on Leo as well.”
“Leo? Why?” What does Don Ferraza have to do with Rocco’s kidnapping?
“She was asking about his wife's murder." Luca runs a hand through his hair. "Specifically, about Ernie Abruzzo being an informant."
Fuck. This is worse than I thought.
It won’t take long for Luca and the others to wonder if I’m handing over information to Olivia instead of gathering it.
"Why the hell am I only hearing about this now?" I demand. "If she's connecting these dots, we needed to know yesterday."
Luca raises his hands defensively. "I only found out this morning myself. Elena mentioned it over breakfast. Apparently Isabella Ferraza mentioned it when they talked last night."
I stop pacing. "Isabella? Not Leo?"
“Not Leo.” Luca holds my stare as we ponder why Leo would have kept something this important from the rest of La Corona.
“Isabella was visiting when it happened. I think she knew Leo wasn’t going to say anything so she told Roman who of course would tell Marco, and Elena who’d tell me, and now I’ve told you. ”
"Did Isabella say what specific questions Ricci was asking?" I ask wondering what Olivia is hoping to learn.
“As far as I know it had to do with Ernie and his brother Sal.”
Sal had worked for Marco but Roman killed him when he kidnapped Isabella.
“Apparently, Ricci had handed over a journal to Isabella in exchange for dirt on you.”
What the fuck?
“Isabella called her out on it. Accusing her of being worse than us for using her mother’s death to gain information.
I guess it worked, because Isabella got the notebook without handing over information.
But it appears Ricci wants to see the notebook for what it might have about Ernie and Sal, and who their handler was. ”
“I thought it was Blackwood,” I say.
Luca shrugs. “What I want to know is why would Ricci suddenly care about a decade-old murder and a kidnapping we handled internally?"
The question hangs between us, but I already know the answer. Because I put the idea in her head that night in her apartment.
I created this problem.
"I'll handle it. I’ll find out what she knows."
What I don't say is how I plan to do that. Or how the thought of seeing her again makes my heart race in ways that have nothing to do with self-preservation.
"Just be careful," Luca warns. "This feels different."
He's right. It is different. Because this time, I'm compromised in ways I never thought possible.
I follow Luca back to the dining room, where Elena has transformed the space into a Thanksgiving wonderland.
"Uncle Dom, sit by me!" Adalina pats the chair beside her, shooting her brothers a triumphant look.
I settle in, watching Rocco and Elio's faces fall before I wink at them. "Don't worry, boys. I'm saving room for both of you after dessert."
Their faces light up instantly. Kids are so easy to please. They’re honest in their emotions, transparent in their needs.
Nothing like the complicated world of adults where someone like Olivia can make me feel things I've never felt before, then disappear completely.
Elena places the turkey at the center of the table, beaming as Luca stands to carve it.
They exchange a look, private, intimate. I realize this is their first Thanksgiving as a family. Suddenly, I feel like an interloper.
"Dom, will you lead the toast?" Elena asks, handing me a glass of wine.
I raise my glass, looking around at these faces I've known my entire life. "To family. The one thing that never changes, even when everything else does."
The triplets clink their juice glasses enthusiastically against mine, spilling drops on the tablecloth.
As we eat, I let the warmth of family wash over me.
Rocco tells me about his soccer team while Elio interrupts with tales from school.
Adalina quietly slips her hand into mine between courses, a gesture so trusting it nearly breaks me.
This is what matters. This constancy, this belonging. The empire I've built means nothing without people to share it with.
Yet even surrounded by family, thoughts of Olivia intrude. Would she laugh at Rocco's jokes? Would she help Adalina cut her turkey? Would she look at me across this table and see something more than a criminal?
I catch Elena watching me. "You seem distracted.”
I force a smile. "Just business."
But it's not business that's carved this hollow space inside me. It's the absence of someone who was never really mine to begin with.
I push it away to focus on the here and now. Being with my cousin and her family. Celebrating our blessings. Health. Wealth. Family.
I leave Elena's house late, the triplets' sticky goodnight kisses still warm on my cheek.
I’m tired, but Olivia continues to ruminate in my mind.
What is she up to? I can’t rest until I find out.
I drive directly to her place. I don’t care that it’s a holiday. That she might have family visiting. That she might not be home. Nothing else happens until I talk to her.
I park a block from her building, giving myself one final warning. This isn't about whatever happened between us. This is about protecting La Corona.
About finding out why she's suddenly interested in Rocco's kidnapping and Mrs. Ferraza's murder.
I will not let her see how she's affected me. I will not reveal that I've thought about her every day since that night. I will be Don Vitale. Calculating. Controlled. Untouchable.
As I approach her building, I steel myself against whatever pull she has on me.
Tonight, I'm not the man who lost himself in her body.
I'm La Corona.
And I need answers more than I need her touch.